The 2022 Senior Bowl Quarterback Position Break Down
This quarterback class is viewed as a down year to many, a step down from previous years of top prospects being fought over as prizes by fledgling teams looking to turn around their misfortunes. 2022 has the potential to be the first year to not have a quarterback be the first player off the board since 2017 when Myles Garrett was selected first overall by the Cleveland Browns.
The 2022 quarterback class doesn’t necessarily lack talent. Almost all of the top prospects have intriguing traits, many just lack polish and have big question marks about their overall games. The Senior Bowl has been a great showcase for quarterbacks in recent years, Justin Herbert and Josh Allen are just two examples of top quarterbacks who helped raise their stock in Mobile. This year nearly every top quarterback in the 2022 class minus Matt Corral is going to be participating in the Senior Bowl, and a big week in Mobile could be the first step in taking over the quarterback #1 mantle.
Sam Howell is the name that stands out the most on the roster. The North Carolina junior graduated in time to attend the Senior Bowl, and he may be the player that needs a big week more than anyone. Sam Howell put the world on notice early on, throwing for over 3,500 yards and over 30 touchdowns in both of his first two seasons. The raw traits Howell possessed such as his great arm strength were very apparent. There were some concerns about his game though. Howell would unravel at times under pressure, looking panicky in the pocket. His pocket presence needed work and the UNC offense really limited the reads he made.
In his junior season, nothing really improved from Howell, the UNC offense definitely feeling the weight of losing two 1,000 yard rushers and two drafted wide receivers. For Howell, the 2021 NCAA season did not go quite as well as he would’ve hoped for, due to factors both in and out of his control, but he still has a chance to show why many pegged him as the #1 quarterback in this class before the season. Without the limitations of his offense and in front of the entire football world, Howell can put on display enough of his traits to push himself back into first-round talks.
Kenny Pickett is the other name that stands out on the roster. The 5th year senior out of Pittsburgh was someone on the Senior Bowl’s radar before the season, but certainly not as one of the main attractions of the event. For most of his collegiate career, Pickett was just a solid quarterback. Nothing really stood out about him or screamed “NFL prospect.” Now Pickett is a Heisman candidate and a potential first-round pick after his stellar 2021 season. Pickett threw for over 4,000 yards and 42 touchdowns, and his film improved in every way too. Can Pickett be the next breakout senior in the mold of Joe Burrow?
Nevada’s gunslinger Carson Strong has become THE internet darling of this draft. With no real standout quarterback, many have flocked to the lesser-known quarterback out of the Mountain West. Strong’s name describes his game, Strong. He is a big arm pocket quarterback who can make every throw on the field physically. He is generally accurate and will be a good fit for a vertical passing game. If you want a quarterback who can stretch the field, Strong is that guy and undoubtedly his arm will impress viewers down in Mobile.
There’s a potentially massive problem with Strong’s game though, his mobility. Strong is not a great athlete one bit. He’s not a guy you want running the ball or to run many option plays with. He is limited outside of the pocket, and will not offer the escapability that others do, and that is going to be a problem for some teams. The biggest thing that is going to be monitored is how well Strong can manage the pocket. The league has seen below-average athletes thrive as pocket passers thanks to their ability to navigate the pocket. Can Strong be mobile enough and smart enough to be a master of the pocket, to negate his below-average athleticism, and to best utilize everything he does well throwing the ball?
Desmond Ridder and Malik Willis both enter Hancock-Whitney Stadium in similar situations. Both have some very intriguing tools at their disposal. Ridder is big, can run, and has a good arm. Malik Willis is a dynamic running threat and arguably has the best arm in the class. Both have not shown to be complete quarterbacks yet, able to consistently make accurate throws and go through reads. The traits for both are enough to have interest in them, potentially early.
Malik Willis is a player whose college system did his pro evaluation no favors. The Liberty offense was so RPO-heavy that Willis never really got a chance to show that he can make reads. There was also a ton of questionable play-calling, and the talent surrounding Willis was not the best. We have no idea just how good Willis is as a quarterback yet. The player
For Ridder, he has to show at the Senior Bowl that he can consistently make every throw asked of him. He has the arm power to make the throws, he just has to consistently throw an accurate throw. After four years of college ball Ridder looks like a good college quarterback with some NFL-level tools, can he be just a legitimate NFL quarterback?
Nobody in the NFL draft world knew who Bailey Zappe really was before the season, and nobody expected him to enter the Senior Bowl as one of the most productive quarterbacks in the country. The senior quarterback had success at FCS school Houston Baptist but nobody expected Zappe to lead the nation in touchdown passes with 61, breaking Joe Burrow’s NCAA record. Zappe was the perfect quarterback for Western Kentucky’s system, linking up with fellow Houston Baptist transfer Jerreth Sterns to make the Hilltoppers offense one of the best in the country.
Zappe doesn’t have physical tools that jump off the screen. He isn’t going to run like Willis or have the arm strength of Howell. Zappe is a smart quarterback who makes good quick decisions and throws good accurate passes. Just how high can Zappe go after his stint at the Senior Bowl?
Senior Bowl Final QB Roster:
Sam Howell, North Carolina
Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh
Carson Strong, Nevada.
Desmond Ridder, Cincinnati
Malik Willis, Liberty
Bailey Zappe, Western Kentucky
Writer
-By: Jacob Keppen